


Still Charmed

by haloburns



Category: Charmed (TV 1998)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, F/M, Gen, Prue didn't die because of a premonition, What-If, dunno if I'll add paige in yet, power of four sounds great (then at least one of them can have a day off every so often...)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-19
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2020-12-23 19:30:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21086615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haloburns/pseuds/haloburns
Summary: Phoebe’d had a premonition. She’d come to Piper and Prue, crying, sobbing, hoping there was a way to fix it before it was too late. They hadn’t been able to save Andy, but then again, Andy wasn’t as powerful as Prue.





	1. Episode 1: Still Charmed

**Author's Note:**

> this is like my fourth time (in a row) watching charmed this year, and i've got Ideas. here's the beginning of one i've talked about with my sister a lot. i may write a few of these, mostly ones that are central to paige being there (like the evil enchantress one) but the ones that don't rely on paige will probably be left out. they might be as short as this, or longer, depending on how much i want to get into. i'm still at uni right now and have other things i should be writing but oh well
> 
> i've decided this is the make up of the "fourth season." This is because I'm cutting out heavily Paige-centric episodes, like Enter the Demon, because it relies on Paige learning potions and messing things up. It doesn't integrate well with this new AU. But, other episodes, like A Knight to remember, do better because yes they rely on Paige, but they can be minor tweaks that make it about Prue and delve into some cool stuff. In cases like Size Matters, where the only thing I would be changing about the episode, really, would be the names, I'm not going to bother really writing them. Here's the list, which apparently only excludes 2-3 episodes:
> 
> 1\. Still Charmed  
2\. Hell Hath No Fury  
3\. A Knight to Remember  
4\. Brain Drain  
5\. Black as Cole  
6\. Muse to My Ears  
7\. A Page from the Past (maybe, the Frankie and Lulu bit is too good to miss out on)  
8\. Lost and Bound  
9\. Charmed and Dangerous  
10\. The Three Faces of Phoebe  
11\. Marry-Go-Round  
12\. The Fifth Halliwell  
13\. Saving Private Leo  
14\. Bite Me  
15\. We’re Off To See The Wizard  
16\. Long Live the Queen  
17\. Womb Raider  
18\. Witch Way Now?

“_Evil winds that blow, that which forms below, no longer may you dwell, death takes you with this spell!” _they shouted, their faces turned away from the violent wind that Shax conjured and embodied. He screamed as he burst into oblivion, and the sisters heaved a sigh of relief.

“Leo!” Phoebe called, rushing over to help Piper where she’d be blown through the wall with Shax’s final blast. The whitelighter immediately set to healing his wife, looking down at her with concern.

“Prue?!” Piper gasped as she sat up, grabbing Leo’s arm to steady herself.

“Right here, Piper,” she said with a smile, coming from the kitchen. She’d sequestered herself in the basement for the duration of the fight, astral projecting herself to say the spell.

“That was a dangerous move,” Leo said, trying to hide his pride. “Risky. You had no idea that you could even access your magic while astral projecting.”

“Well, it worked, didn't it? Quit complaining,” Prue said with a smirk. It was a weak attempt to hide the shaky feeling in her stomach, the one that usually followed almost dying, again.

“I’m not complaining at all,” Phoebe said, wrapping her arms around her big sister from behind, hugging her tightly. Piper joined in, fighting back tears at the thought of losing Prue for real this time.

“She’s the most powerful of us, Leo, of course it was gonna work,” Piper mumbled into Prue’s shoulder.

“Okay, well, enough of the hugging, _ we _,” she motioned to all four of them, “should go celebrate!”

“Prue--”

“We just defeated the Source’s assassin, I think that deserves a little celebration!” she yelled as she ran to get her purse and jacket.

“But it’s not enough,” Phoebe said, sharing a worried look with Piper. “Shax was just the messenger. We gotta go after the Source.”

“And that will be tomorrow’s problem!” Prue walked back over, grabbing her sisters’ hands in hers, squeezing gently. “Listen, I just avoided death. Again. We delivered a blow to the Source. We deserve a night out. Even Leo agrees!” Six eyes turned to look at him, one set with a cocked eyebrow, and he grinned, laughing a little awkwardly.

“I mean… She has a point. We’ll worry about the Source tomorrow, he won’t come after you tonight.” Piper smiled, leaning into him as he wrapped an arm around her. “You deserve it…”

“Great! To the club then!” Prue practically dragged the three of them out the door, Piper protesting like normal and Phoebe making loud plans with Leo as they jogged down the steps.

Glancing back at the door, smiling, Prue pulled it shut with a wave of her fingers. Who needs keys, really?


	2. Hell Hath No Fury

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prue is full of anger after the major battles with Shax and is vanquishing as many demons as possible, jeopardizing her life as well as Piper and Phoebe's. But there's more tension in the house than they realize as Prue throws them into another battle unprepared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holee shit, this chapter was a bitch. i actually changed my mind half-way through about where i wanted it to go. might edit more later, but i've spent days on this. enjoy!

The car _ screeched! _around the corner as Piper hit it too hard, causing Phoebe to cry out, throwing her hands out to brace herself.

“Okay, turn left up here, and can you step on the gas a little?” Prue asked, absently flicking her finger at the pedal. Piper side eyed her sister as she made the hard left turn, barely missing a yellow taxi.

“Off the gas, off the gas!” Phoebe said, looking out the window at the furious cabbie. _ Sorry _, she mouthed.

“Does somebody else want to drive here?” Piper snapped, huffing as she looked over at Prue again.

Ignoring Piper, Prue looked in the rearview at Phoebe and said, “Phoebe, the demon is not waiting around for us to come and vanquish him!”

“We don’t have the power to vanquish him, Prue. Scrying for random evil tells us nothing.” She turned and looked out the window, knowing this argument was going to go nowhere like it had every time they’d had it since they’d vanquished Shax. Prue had been on another super witch kick.

“It tells us where the demons are, and since we vanquished two already this week, I’d say it’s working pretty well.”

“Yeah, thanks to Piper for saving our butts with her new power!” Piper hummed her agreement sarcastically, biting back a harsh laugh.

“So, what are we supposed to do? Just sit around and wait for them to pick us off? If we weren’t going after them, they’d be coming after us! I’d rather do it on my own terms.”

“They’re coming after us anyway, Prue!” Piper snapped. “The _ Source _is coming after us.”

“And we won’t be ready for him, because instead of learning the most we can about him and how we _ might _be able to defeat him, we’re out hunting every Tom, Dick, and Beelzebub in San Francisco!”

Piper opened her mouth to add to the argument when Prue yelled, “Turn here!” causing another squealing sharp turn.

Once they arrived at the end of the alley, Prue hopped out of the car before Piper had fully stopped.

“Hey! Big scary demon!” she yelled, before turning to signal Piper, who rolled her eyes and aimed at the demon and fired. He rippled weirdly and Phoebe cried out, “He’s gonna blow!” as she and Piper ducked into the Jeep as green goo exploded on the hood. Piper sighed and turned the windshield wipers on, hoping this wasn’t the kind of demon gunk to eat through metal. This was a new car, for god’s sake...

Prue grinned as she got into the car. “Next!”

* * *

Phoebe sighed as she watched Prue drag an extra thick Sharpie in an x pattern through the Kevmay demon they’d just vanquished.

“Oh, I know you’re happy we got him, Prue, but do you really have to disfigure the book?” Phoebe says, looking mournfully at the Sharpied page. Hundreds of years of family history and her sister just… drew on it. 

“Hmm… This one could incinerate human flesh with his eyes… That must sting,” Prue said, capping the marker, ignoring what Phoebe said. There were more important things to think about than the appearance of the book.

“You think that’s funny?” Piper said in a low voice. Prue looked up, brushing a long strand of hair out of her face, leveling her sister with a look. “You could’ve gotten killed. Do you understand that?”

“Yes, Piper, I understand killed very well,” she said, shifting to cross her arms. Phoebe backed up a little, ready to run off from the impending fight. She and Prue fought a lot, that was normal. But when Prue and Piper fought? Take cover, world war three was impending.

“Then why would you want to keep risking your life, and Phoebe’s, not to mention mine?! I’ve got a club to run, a husband to spend time with and-and we’re supposed to be working on a plan to defeat the source! But instead, I’m out protecting your ass!” Piper huffed, her hands on her hips as she glared at her older sister. “I’m exhausted, my powers can’t take this level of use every time you decide to scry for random evil!”

“Well, you know what, Piper? Next time, you can just stay home.” Prue’s tone was dismissive, the one that pushed every single button Piper had, as she looked back down at the book, flipping through pages with purpose. Piper stepped closer to Prue and the Book, anger weaving its way into every word she deliberately spoke.

“If you insist on going on these suicide missions, then you force me to be there, because there’s no way in hell I’m losing a sister, not after how close we got with Shax.” The doorbell rang, interrupting their argument and providing Phoebe with a perfect opportunity to intervene.

“Hey, Piper, will you go get that, please?” she asked, laying a gentle had on her sister’s shoulder as she ventured a few steps forward.

“Sure. If it’s the Source, I’ll just ask him to come back later,” Piper snarked, throwing one last glare at Prue over her shoulder as she stalked from the attic. Phoebe sighed, deflating a little. Piper and Prue rarely fought like this, forcing Phoebe to be the middle sibling. No wonder Piper never took any of their shit, this was exhausting.

Once Piper had vanished from sight, Phoebe sighed and turned to face Prue, who hadn’t stopped flicking through pages.

“Piper’s right, Prue. We have a system for fighting demons, one that’s worked well for the last three years.”

“We didn't know about the Source for the last three years. We need to get rid of as many of his soldiers as we can before he tries to attack again. The more we take now, the faster we can get back to our every day lives!”

“This is not the right way, Prue, and you know it! I know that you are scared after what could have happened with Shax! I am too! Piper probably more than both of us combined! But throwing yourself after every demon you can find is _ not _ the way to deal with that. It _ never _ ends well.” Phoebe took a deep breath before looking back at Prue, who still had her nose buried in the Book. Defeated, she sighed and slumped her shoulders. Obviously, the direct approach wasn’t going to work. “I’m going to go make some tea, do you want anything?”

“No thanks…” she said absently, grabbing a notepad and pencil to take notes. Giving a slow nod, Phoebe turned and walked from the attic with one last glance over her shoulder. She heaved a great sigh as she walked down the many stairs in the house, thinking about all that had happened in the last month. Since Shax, Prue had decided to face death head on and went looking for fights where there shouldn’t have been any. It wasn’t healthy, and she and Piper were worried Prue was going to self-destruct, and this time they really would lose their sister.

* * *

Piper was furiously pacing the conservatory when Phoebe finally reached the bottom of the stairs.

“Good, you’re here. Leo!” she yelled. “Leo!” He orbed in, immediately drawing the glare of his wife.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” he asked, looking between his pacing wife and where Phoebe sat on the loveseat, automatically on the defensive.

“You’ve got to talk to Prue,” Piper said in a short voice, the one that always meant she was _ angry _.

“What about Prue?” He furrowed his brows together, trying to think of the last time he’d actually talked to Prue. He hadn’t been around much for their witchy activities, focusing on his other charges while he _ thought _ they were coming up with a game plan on how to vanquish the Source.

“She’s out of control!” Piper threw her hands out, her hair _ swishing _violently as she completed another lap in her pace.

“Piper!” Phoebe scolded before turning to look at Leo. “It’s just that we’re very worried about her. She’s not processing what almost happened with Shax and she’s taking it out on demons across the city.”

“Not to mention, abusing my power when she doesn’t want to come up with a spell or a potion! She doesn’t care that I haven’t fully gotten the hang of it just yet, she just points and says FIRE! without thinking!” Piper pointed her finger towards the ceiling, huffing slightly before resuming her pacing. 

“Well, I’ll talk to her,” Leo said, watching Piper pace with a little ache in his heart. He wished he could heal their issues like he does their wounds, but this wasn’t really that easy. There was something underlying that he couldn’t solve for them. This was something they needed to work out together. Leo moved to plant a kiss on top of Piper’s head before orbing upstairs to talk to Prue.

* * *

“Prue, it isn’t just that it’s dangerous--”

“Leo, whitelighters are supposed to guide, not judge. Just because I’m doing things a little bit differently doesn’t mean that there is a problem.” She didn't look up from the map on her bed, her shoulders tense.

“Look, I’m your brother-in-law, not just your whitelighter. When you speak to me like that, there _ is _ a problem. I can’t help you unless you talk to me.”

Prue drops the crystal she had been using to scry with, pushing her hair back behind her ears. She took a deep breath and Leo was hoping they’d actually made some leeway when--

“There’s nothing to talk about, Leo. I’m not just doing this for kicks, I’m doing it so we can weed out the Source’s army before going head to head against him.” There was a pause while Leo just stared at her, not really believing what he was hearing. Prue was always head strong, always hiding her feelings for the greatest good, but now in doing that, she was putting her sisters at risk.

“Honestly,” he said, moving closer to her. “I think you’re doing it because it’s easier than confronting what you’re feeling.” Prue may have tensed even more, but she went back to scrying and ignoring Leo. He sighed, trying to think of another approach to making Prue see sense when she cried out.

“Aha! Demon!” She jumped up, grabbing the map and throwing a little sticker dot over where the crystal landed.

“What?” Leo asked, stepping back in surprise.

“I have work to do. Thanks Leo.” She headed down the attic stairs, yelling, “Piper! Phoebe! Let’s go!”

* * *

The three sisters were making their way down an alley, Prue obviously leading them forward.

“Prue, Piper and I do not support you in this. If you’re going to insist on doing it, you are going in alone,” Phoebe tried as Prue stopped to consult the map.

“Okay, I’ll see you at home,” Prue said absently as she started moving forward again.

“I told you that wouldn’t work,” hissed Piper.

“It was worth a shot!” Phoebe said, giving her sister a dirty look. “Wait a minute… Do you smell smoke?” The three sisters stopped walking, taking a minute to sniff the air. Sure enough, there was a faint smokey smell in the air, and not the kind that promised great food.

“It’s in there,” Prue said, pointing at a large wooden door. Smoke was billowing out from underneath the frame. From inside, they could hear a man calling out in panic. Prue squared up with the door, preparing to fling it off its hinges, but it didn't budge.

“Uh… Prue--”

“Yeah, yeah. Crap. Okay.” She took a deep breath and shook out her limbs before doing it again. The door flew back, smashing against the alley wall behind them. The man that had been calling for help ran out, knocking into Prue as he went. Three women-things followed him, growling. Prue moved to throw them across the alley, before Piper yelled, “Prue, let them go!” Already through the motion, Prue threw a car against the wall in front of the red-clad demons.

“Uh-oh…” she said as they turned around and growled at her. Piper tried to freeze them, but started to panic as they kept advancing on her.

“They're-they're-th-th-they're immune to my powers!” A demoness lunged at Prue, but she dodged it while Piper recovered from the mental roadblock of ‘demons no freeze’. Another one went for Phoebe who launched herself into the air and kicked at the furies.

In the chaos, one of the demons knocked Piper down, blowing smoke into her mouth. She coughed, throwing her off with a blast. The demon went up in flames and the other two run off, leaving the girls behind in the alley, Piper still coughing.

Prue threw the front door open as she stormed up the front walk. She stalked towards the kitchen, yelling, “I’m going to take out those chain-smoking bitches if it’s the last thing I do!”

“It might be the last thing she does,” Phoebe said pessimistically as they followed her into the kitchen.

“That’s very supportive, Phoebe. Whose side are you on?” She glared at her sisters as Piper made her way to the fridge, looking for something, anything to drink. Those things had really done a number on her throat.

“At the moment, I’m on Piper’s side,” Phoebe responded, attitude evident in her voice.

“Well, the last time I checked, we all worked for the same side. Why are we arguing?” Prue slammed her hand down on the island. A water bottle caught Piper’s eye and she grabbed it a little enthusiastically. It crinkled beneath her fingers as she twisted off the top, desperate to get the water to soothe her sore throat.

“We’re not arguing, we’re discussing, Prue. You are arguing. And look, Piper got hurt because of your reckless action.” She moved closer to her sister, hopping up on the little side table by the fridge. “She can’t stop coughing.”

“It’s just from the smoke of the demon burning up, she didn't get me.” She gave Phoebe have half-reassuring smile. “And Prue, your control of your powers seems to be getting worse, not better.” Prue cut a glare at Piper. She wipes water from her chin, shrugging a little. Huffing, Prue stalks out of the kitchen to head towards the attic.

“Well, you know our powers are tied to our emotions, so it would make sense right now,” Phoebe offered. She and Piper walked quickly to try and keep up with Prue’s pace.

“All the more reason to lay low! These demons are dangerous,” Piper argued. 

“All the more reason to vanquish them, okay?” The three of them stopped at the bottom of the stairs as Prue whipped around to face them. “That is what we do. Eliminate evil.”

“Regardless of the consequences,” Piper scoffed. “That sounds just like you, Prue.”

“Okay, Piper,” Prue said, taking a short huffy breath, normally the one that meant she was done arguing, whether she was right or not. “I'm going to vanquish the cancer girls with or without your help.” She jogs up the stairs, leaving Piper and Phoebe at the bottom of the stairs.

“What are we going to do?” Phoebe asks, a little defeated. Piper sighs, relaxing the tense in her shoulder a little bit.

“Go help her, of course. She definitely can’t do this alone. And she sucksat potions anyway.” Piper gives Phoebe a half hearted smile and her sister lets out a little laugh. Together, they slowly head up the stairs.

* * *

When the girls reached the attic, Prue was already flipping through the Book, grumbling to herself. Piper and Phoebe moved to flank her, looking over her shoulder at the Book with her.

“Anything yet?” Phoebe asked, pushing her bangs back out of her face.

“Nope.”

“Oh! Oh! There!” Piper said, pointing at a page Prue flicked past. “Go back.” Prue flipped the couple of pages back, flattening the old pages out. The watercolor painting and dark ink spell out, “Furies. They punish evil-doers but they don’t discriminate against the “evil”. A lie could get you the same end as murder,” Prue read outloud. 

Phoebe made a face as Piper continued reading, “They also enjoy the kill a whole bunch.”

“Then _ we _will take great pleasure in the vanquish.” Prue moved away from the Book, intent on starting a potion or a spell while Piper and Phoebe kept reading. After collecting what she needed, Prue headed down the stairs again. Phoebe watched her go, her brows knit together in concern.

“Phoebe? Did you read this?” Piper pointed to the smaller text on the second page on the furies that Prue just conveniently forgot to read.

“Uh-oh,” Phoebe said lowly as her eyes scanned the words. “The fury smoke kills bad guys, but in good people, it looks for a portal of unexpressed fury. It builds until it consumes your humanity and it turns you into a fury.”

“Uh-oh is correct. Unexpressed fury is Prue alright. We gotta stop her before she goes full demon on us.” Phoebe turns the page, hoping that there’s something to help them figure out how to help their sister.

“I agree, but how? There’s not a potion or a spell. Nothing like when I was a banshee or when you were a wendigo.” Frustrated, Phoebe turns away from the book to pace. 

“I don’t think turning Prue into a dog is the way to go this time,” Piper said. She glanced up at Phoebe before yelling, “Leo!” A few seconds later, white orbs slowly filled in Leo.

“What?” he asked, looking concernedly at Piper and then to Phoebe.

“Well, the good news is we figured out what we found in the alley,” Phoebe said, her voice heavy with sarcasm.

“The bad news is Prue’s gonna turn into a fury,” Piper said in a flat tone.

“A _ fury _? Why didn't you call me when you got from demon hunting?” Leo asked.

“We didn't think she was hurt! Yeah, she got smoked, but how were we supposed to know they were furies or what they’d do? It’s not like Prue is using the Book to hunt these things!” Phoebe yelled. She took a deep breath, trying to keep her calm. “What I mean is, we went in blind. We called you the moment we figured out what happened.”

“Is there anyway to fix her?” Piper asked.

“I’ll have to go check with the Elders. Will you be okay in the meantime?” He ran his hand down Piper’s arm, looking at her with concern.She looked up at him with a tight smile, her falling out of her face. “I’ll be okay once we figure out a way to save our sister. Just go, we can protect ourselves.” She gave him a quick kiss before he orbed out.

“I’m gonna call Cole,” Phoebe said. “Maybe he can help.” She disappeared downstairs. That left Piper alone in the attic. She coughed and sank into one of the many chairs upstairs, biting her lip.

* * *

“A fury? Phoebe, you don’t have much time before she changes,” Cole said, pacing in their living room.

“Thanks, Cole, that’s very helpful. Do you know if there’s a way to stop her from becoming one or changing her back?”

“No, but I also don’t know of that many people becoming furies, so this is a new one for me.” Prue walked in, holding a piece of paper and several vials of vanquishing potion she’d just mixed up.

“Oh. Cole. Hello,” she said, cutting a Look at Phoebe. She shrugged, pretending to look innocent. “What are you doing here?”

“Phoebe asked for my help.” He looked down at Phoebe and figured he probably shouldn’t mention what kind of help she’d asked for.

“Oh, good. Can you tell me what you know about furies? Anything else that might help before I go vanquish their sorry asses?” She held up her tools as she looked to Cole expectantly. Piper came down the stairs quietly, as Cole stumbled through an explanation meant to stall Prue.

“If you’re not going to be helpful, then I’ll just be going,” Prue said. She turned around and almost crashed into Piper. Her arms were crossed and her lips pressed together in a tight line.

“You’re going after them? Again?” Piper asked. “What makes you think you’re going to have any better luck this time?”

“I have a potion and a spell, Piper, I’m not going in empty-handed,” she said. Piper rolled her eyes at her sister’s tone, the nonchalant “I’m not stupid” tone she liked to use on her sisters.

“So you’re just going to continue to throw yourself into the line of fire? Even though it is _ dangerous _ and _ stupid _?!”

Before Prue could respond, Leo orbed in beside them. He’s obviously orbed into an argument, but he could tell something was off.

“What’s going on?” he asks, looking around at all the players in the room.

“Prue here is going off to fight furies and wasn’t going to tell us where she was going!”

“Piper, I can handle this! I told you, I have--”

“A potion and a spell, I know! But you were going to go in alone, with no backup, and with none of us knowing where you were headed to!”

“Okay.” Leo stepped forward, physically putting himself in between them. “I don’t know what’s going on, but we really need to talk.”

“You know what, Leo? I’m sick of talking. Obviously, it doesn’t work!” She stormed away from them, heading into the conservatory. Everyone followed, concerned.

“Piper,” Leo pleaded. He reached out for her but she spun around to face him.

“I said, NO!” Leo disappeared in a blast of white orbs, Piper having blown him up. When he coalesced, he scowled at her.

“Now we really need to talk. Piper, you don’t use your powers on your husband. Do you hear me?”

“Back away slowly, Leo,” Cole said quietly from the doorway. His eyes stayed on Piper as he pushed Phoebe behind him.

“What?” Piper’s husband looked to Cole as he said, “She’s becoming a fury. There’s no reasoning with her now.” They all watched as Piper’s fingernails turned into black claws.

“Piper? I thought Prue was the one going to turn into a fury!”

“Me? Why me?” Prue asked, looking in shock to her sister.

“I dunno, Prue. Near-death experience, major assassin from our biggest enemy, lots of random demon hunting? We thought you had unexpressed fury!”

“Fury? No, Phoebe, I’m _ scared _, not angry.”

“Piper, you’re a good witch. _ Fight this _.” Leo reached for her, hopeful. Piper caressed his face and Leo smiled, relaxing a little. When she pushed him away, snarling, Cole called an energy ball to him. She turned to face the rest of her family and when it looked like she might go for them too, he tossed the low-energy ball at her, singeing her side.

“Cole!” Phoebe scolded.

“I, well…”

“That wasn’t very nice.” Instead of fighting back, Piper disappeared in a puff of smoke.

* * *

“Cole hit her with an energy ball,” Leo said with a scowl. He was standing next to the fireplace, staring out the window.

“Leo, it was low voltage. She didn't even have a burn mark on her.” Phoebe looked up from the Book on the coffee table.

“I’d prefer that he didn't use his demonic powers on my wife. I can’t believe that you let him go look for her. I could’ve sensed her faster!”

“Leo, you don’t know that. She’s not really Piper anymore. I just hope he finds her fast because if this is anything like the time I was a Banshee, she’s gonna be hungry for a kill.”

“This is all my fault…” Prue said for the millionth time.

“Prue, enough with the pity party. We have to find Piper, then you can grovel.” Prue scowled at Phoebe who just raised her eyebrows in a “am I wrong?” gesture.

“Now, she’s not full on yet, she doesn’t have the markings on her face yet. I’m betting those come with the first kill. But we have to find her first…”

* * *

At the end of an alley, a tall man in a hoodie pushes another man against the wall. He holds a knife to his throat, leaning close to the man’s face.

“Anything you want, you can have! Just let me go!” the man against the wall begged, holding his hands up as his eyes filled with tears.

“Shut up,” the man growled. As he leaned in with the knife, two furies appeared behind him and rake their claws across his back. He cries out in pain, spinning to look at who attacked him, his victim running away. When he makes eye contact with the furies, the voices of his victims fill his head. He drops to his knees, the knife falling out of his head as he clutched his head in pain. He begs for his life, but the fury only leans forward to blow smoke into his mouth. He screams as he’s engulfed in flames, leaving only a scorch mark on the pavement.

A puff of smoke behind the furies fades to reveal Piper. They turn around and grin, purring, as they recognize their new sister.

“I've been looking for you.”

* * *

Prue and Phoebe were going over their battle plan in the dining room when Cole shimmers in. He’s covered in bruises and scratches and still looked on edge as he spun to face them.

“Cole, thank God.” She stands quickly and pulls him into a hug.

“Don’t thank him yet.”

“You didn't find her?” Phoebe physically deflated as she flopped back into a chair.

“I didn't get a chance to look. Every time I used my sensing powers, a bounty hunter sensed me. I fought off three before I could get away. I’m sorry,” he said as he leaned down to kiss her head.

“No, it’s- it’s okay. We’ll figure it out.” The three of them sat in silence for what felt like ages before Prue moved. She started furiously flipping through the Book, on the hunt. Finally, she stopped and speared the page with her finger.

“What if-- What if we used the To Find a Lost Witch spell?” Prue suggested, spinning the Book so Phoebe could look.

“But Piper’s not a witch anymore, Prue.”

“Yeah, but we’ve substituted words all the time, why can’t we do it now?” Cole looked between them, intrigued by this look into witches. Changing spells… That was interesting.

“Would that work?”

“Well, no. Not if she’s already looking for a kill. The call won’t be strong enough.” Phoebe reasoned, pushing her hands through her hair. “The pull of evil will be too much. When I was possessed by the Woogie, the blood lust was so strong…”

“Woogie?” Cole asked, looking down at his girlfriend. What the hell was a _Woogie_?

“Don’t ask,” Phoebe sighed, shaking her head. “The point is, I don’t think she’ll answer the call.” Silence settled over them again as Prue stared at Cole. 

“Then we’ll add bait.” She raised her eyebrows at Cole, who looked back at her, processing her statement. He looked over to Phoebe, his thoughts obvious on his face. _Hey, there’s an idea._ She stared back at him, incredulous, before looking between him and Prue.

“No. No. Uh, no. Are you kidding me? No!”

“The furies go after evildoers, right?”

“Prue, we are not using the love of my life as bait!” She gaped at Prue in shock. 

“Oh, yes we are,” Cole chimed in, sitting up. “It’s perfect.” He moved to stand next to Prue, physically moving to her side. Phoebe turned her stare to him like he was crazy, thinking of the consequences.

“Cole, you have been a demon for over a century. That is a lot of victims. The pain of their cries alone can kill you.”

“Yes, but as you said, I'm not the demon that did those things anymore. And if facing my crimes helps save your sister…” She hated when he used her words against her… When it looked like Phoebe was going to say no again, Cole moved to sit back down next to her. “Phoebe. I would do almost anything for you, you know that. But I will not be a coward for you. Please don't ask me to be.”

She ran her hand across his cheek, looking into his eyes. “If you’re sure. We’ll need some of your blood.”

“Right,” he said, looking around. Prue beckoned with her fingers and called one of the knives out of the silver set on the buffet. She held it out in front of Cole, letting him make the final decision.

He grabbed it and moved with the sisters into the foyer. They lit a candle and Cole moved with Phoebe to stand over it, the knife in hand. Prue moves to stand beside Phoebe and grabs her hand as they prick Cole’s finger. The blood sizzled as it fell into the flame, and they started the spell.

"Power of the sisters rise, course unseen across the skies, come to us who call you near..."

In an alley across town, Piper looked up from where the other two furies are fawning over her, finishing her hair, and adjusting her new clothes. Faintly, in the back of her mind, she heard her sister’s chanting, _Come to us and settle here. Blood to blood, I summon thee, blood to blood, return to me_.

To her new sisters she said, “I know where evil dwells.”

* * *

“I still don’t get how we’re going to un-demon Piper,” Prue said. She was leaned against the couch, her arms crossed.

“We have to close the portal of unexpressed fury,” Phoebe said matter of factly, watching Cole pace.

“Unexpressed? Piper has always been okay with expressing her anger,” Cole said with a scoff and a raised an eyebrow. Prue nodded enthusiastically, pointing at Cole in agreement.

“But there’s something she’s not saying, something that’s eating at her,” Phoebe pointed out. 

“What is it?” Prue was obviously frustrated and confused as to why her sister was this angry. Piper had issues, sure, but this felt… out of proportion.

“I don’t know, but I think I have an idea.” Prue didn't miss the glance Phoebe threw her way. She opened her mouth to ask what that idea is when Cole cried out and fell to his knees.

“They’re close,” Phoebe said gravely. She knelt beside Cole as he sobbed, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…”

A fury burst through the front door, drawing Prue’s attention. She flung her back out, the fury flipping over herself into the door. In record time, the fury got up and lunged at Prue, drawing her directly into a fight. While Prue is distracted, the other fury and Piper smoke in in front of Cole.

“Nice decoy, Piper. Two points,” Phoebe said, levitating to kick her sister and the other fury out of the way. “Cole, come on, you have to get up!” She tried to help him up as the furies surrounded them. Prue flung a lamp at them, trying to distract them again, to draw their attention away. While Prue drew them towards her, Cole gathered enough of himself to throw out two energy balls, vanquishing the other two furies.

Enraged, Piper spins around and scratches Cole. He winces, but it’s just one for the collection.

“Cole is not your problem, Piper, and you know it!” Piper lunged at Phoebe, swiping at her. They started fighting, grappling with each other while Cole conjured an energy ball. Leo orbed into the dining room as the chaos begin to increase.

“Cole, don’t!” She shouted as she flipped Piper. “You think I abandoned you. You think it’s my fault Prue almost died. You blame me. You should just admit it!” Piper let out a frustrated yell and sent her flying into the wardrobe in the hall before turning to look at Leo.

“Piper… You don’t want to kill me. That won’t solve anything, and you know it.” Piper stalked towards him, intent on causing some kind of damage. “It’s not about me and it’s not about Phoebe, is it?”

“Phoebe’s not the sister who abandoned you. It’s me, isn’t it?” Prue said softly, drawing Piper’s attention. As they got closer, Piper grabbed Prue by the throat, lifting her up until she couldn’t reach the floor anymore.

“Leo, do something!” Phoebe cried, clutching Cole’s hand. Leo darted forward and grabbed their shoulders, orbing them out.

In the quiet aftermath, Cole asked softly, “Where’d he take them?”

“To what Piper was really angry about.”

* * *

Piper and Prue materialized with Leo in a mausoleum. As Prue looked around, she realized it was their family mausoleum. The names of their ancestors before them were on plaques surrounding them. On the wall behind Prue was an empty plague, next to her mother’s and Gram’s. Where her name should be. Piper stumbles back from Prue and Leo when she realizes where she is. She tries to leave, but finds the door of the mausoleum is locked from the outside. 

“Tell her, Piper. It’s alright to be angry her,” Leo said, looking at Prue as he spoke. “You should be. She almost died and left you alone. It’s okay.”

Piper turns and looks at Prue, tears welling in her eyes.

“How dare you!” she screamed, rushing at Prue. “How dare you risk your life without thinking about us!” She hit her sister’s shoulders before Prue wrapped her arms around her sister, pulling them to the floor together. Piper sobbed, curling into her sister as she shifts back into her normal self.

“You risk your life everyday like you’re expendable and you never think about what would happen to me and Phoebe if you were gone,” she sobbed, collapsing more into Prue as her grief consumed her. “I can’t go on without you Prue. How do you think I could live without you?”

Prue hugged Piper close, running her hand over her hair, rocking her as she cried. She didn't say anything, just held her sister close and cried with her too.

* * *

The next morning, Piper walked into the kitchen and sat at the island. Prue handed her a cup of coffee that she gratefully took a sip of. She pointedly didn't look at Prue, still reeling from the events of the previous night.

“Did you sleep?” Prue asked. Her voice was quieter than normal and it barely disrupted the quiet of the kitchen.  
“Yeah, actually,” Piper said after a long pause. “Better than I have in a while.” They drank their coffee in silence for a few minutes before Piper finally worked up the courage to ask, “So, how scary was I?”

“Heck, I’ve seen worse. Phoebe’s been worse.”

“How is Phoebe?” Piper spun her mug around by its handle, looking up at Prue a little ashamedly.

“Phoebe’s okay,” Phoebe said as she walked into the kitchen. “Mm, it’s good to have you back, Piper.”

“Sorry for kicking your ass,” she said, but Phoebe and Prue could tell it was told in jest.

“Oh sure you are,” Phoebe said, leaning into her sister, kissing her shoulder. Prue rounded the kitchen island, wrapping her arms around both of her sisters.

“I love you guys,” she said, pulling them tightly to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi i'm back on my shit. rewatching charmed s1-3, i remember how much i LOVE prue, and how much i want to see what would happen if you go through and never introduce Paige. or possibly later introduce Paige? some of the later episodes rely HEAVILY on her (think temp agencies, her interactions with the magical communities, etc.) i'll figure it out. i'll be updating slowly bc i work full time and also have to sleep at some point. i'm using the scripts provided on the charmed fandom page to rewrite these, so a LOT of this is lifted directly from the script.


	3. A Knight to Remember

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prue casts a spell that brings back a prince from one of her past lives into the 21st century. Her past (evil) self follows and trouble ensues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so this is a chapter i'm actually proud of. here's where a lot of the story is starting to deviate. while i'm still following the script, i'm starting to slip away and make it sound less stilted because things that happen on the screen don't translate well to static media.

Prue laid in the bed, drawing circles on Bane’s back as he dozed peacefully beside her.

“Tell me a story,” he murmured.

“A story?” Prue laughed. “What kind?” He cracked his eyes open a little to stare into Prue’s gray eyes.

“Your favorite kind.” Prue stared back into Bane’s eyes, a smile playing at the edges of her lips.

“Alright… Um, once upon a time, there lived a handsome prince who was about to marry a beautiful maiden. But an enchantress with dark powers wanted the prince for herself so she could become queen and rule the entire kingdom.”

“I hate her,” Bane said, turning onto his back so he could pull Prue closer. She snuggled into him before looking back up at him.

“Really? I always kind of related to her a little…”

“Like I said, I love her.” Prue laughed and shook her head, her hair falling into her face. Bane slowly pushed it back out of her face, staring at her, completely besotted. “Then what happened?”

“Well, in order to pull off that kind of magic, the enchantress had to wait for a sign that her powers were at their darkest.”

“A sign?”

“Mhmm. See, in the stars.” Prue pointed out the window to where a small patch of the sky was visible through the trees outside Bane’s apartment. She traced the pattern as she talked, “The prince, his sword, and the three stars that form his crown. Once the enchantress saw the sign, she locked away his betrothed and cast a spell on him. _Bring together my prince and me. Let him fall on bended knee. I summon_… _I summon_... Oh, shoot. I can never remember the end of it.”

“Let me guess,” Bane said, tucking Prue’s head underneath his. “The prince defeats the enchantress, marries his true betrothed and they live happily ever after, right?”

“Nuh-uh,” Prue said, close her eyes as she let herself melt back into Bane. “Actually, the enchantress had a kid, killed the prince, and ruled forever.” Bane laughed and she smiled at the pleasant rumbling in his chest.

“What kind of fairy tale is that?”

“It’s just one that’s stayed with me as long as I can remember… Told you I was a weird kid.”

“I need to get you out more, Prue.”

“It’d be easier if you were around more, Bane,” Prue said solemnly, sighing as the reality of her relationship with Bane settled in.

“I’m around now,” he said, but it sounded weak to both their ears.

* * *

Piper stirred her coffee, absently staring off into space. Phoebe walked in, scowling. Water drops fell from her hair, splatting ungraciously on the floor.

“Look at me,” she said, slamming her hand onto the kitchen island. “I look like a drowned rat. I need my blow dryer!”

“Pretend your camping,” Piper said with a smirk.

“I hate camping,” Phoebe pouted.

“Well, I hate instant coffee, but I’m drinking it, aren’t I?” Piper held up her cup sarcastically before taking a drink. She winced as it went down. She wouldn’t call herself a coffee _snob_, but this stuff was awful.

“We can’t keep living with no electricity. It’s medieval!” Phoebe whined. She flopped down next to Piper, staring forlornly at her soaked strands.

“At least we’re conserving energy,” Piper offered with a casual shrug. Phoebe scowled at her and picked at her fingers for a moment.

“Well, this is ridiculous. We have to figure out when the Shocker demon’s gonna attack next and fast. I refuse to live like this anymore.”

“Pheebs, we still need the Power of Three to vanquish him and unfortunately, number three is shacking up across town every other night.”

“Y’know, this is so not fair. Prue, super witch, “The-Charmed-Ones-Come-First” _Prue_, is shirking her duties to boink her boy toy.” Piper nodded along, gritting her teeth to finish her coffee. She would buy herself a latte as a consolation prize on her way to the club. She moved to put her cup in the sink, listening to Phoebe’s rant. Yes, it was annoying that the sometimes-imperious Prue was leaving them hanging with a demon in the house. But, she was also spending time with Bane, who she didn't get to see all that often. If it were her and Leo… She’d want that time alone without her sisters bugging her constantly.

“I know, but she’s having fun for once…” Piper said half-heartedly.

“I’m going to call her,” Phoebe insisted. She stalked to the other end of the kitchen and yanked the phone out of its cradle as Piper yelled, “Not the cordless!”

As Phoebe gasped, “Uh-oh…” and dropped the phone to the floor, the Shocker demon came through the phone. He threw a bolt of lightning at the two of them, throwing them across the kitchen and smashing the kitchen table. Piper scrambled to get up, rolling to her knees enough to throw her hands up and blast him back into the nearest socket.

Content he was gone, Piper turned to help Phoebe up from the table.

“You okay?” 

“No, I am not okay. Ow, ow, OW! This is so crazy. We have to call Prue and set up a time where she can come over and…” They dusted each other off, looking at their destroyed table. Piper made a mental note to have Leo fix it. Again.

“Phoebe, we don’t schedule vanquishes, okay? Demon attacks don’t usually fit into the day planners, you know that!”

“Okay, well then what do you suggest?”

“We’ll just have to stage an intervention,” Piper said. She made it sound so easy.

“Piper, this is Prue we’re talking about. Remember the seven deadly sins?”

“Of course--”

“Prue’s was pride and she couldn’t even tell THEN that she was doing something wrong!” They both sighed and stared at their hands on the table. There wasn’t really a right answer. Stage an intervention, she gets pissed, then the vanquish gets pushed back while she sulks at Bane’s. Don’t stage an intervention and she waltzes into the house a few days later like nothing’s wrong and doesn’t understand why her sisters are mad at her.

“Well, I have to go to the club, I’ve gotta open.” Piper walked past Phoebe, kissing her on the head as she went, calling out, “Love you!” as disappeared around the corner.

* * *

Prue stirred to the sound of an alarm going off. Groaning, she curled closer to the warm body next to her. Sleep was still hanging around the edges of her consciousness, and if she just stayed still…

“Mm… Prue, we gotta get up.”

“Noo…” she groaned, clinging tighter to Bane as he started to shift into a sitting position. He chuckled and brushed her hair aside to kiss her cheek.

“I gotta get ready to leave.”

“You’re always leaving…”

“I know, Prue, and I’m doing my best to come back to you permanently, but seeing as how my parole officer is in LA and I’m not allowed to move permanently yet…” Prue huffed and moved to sit up next to him.

“I know, I know… Doesn’t make it suck any less.”

“You could move to LA with me, you know.” He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close again. “We could get a house close to the beach… Spend all day doing nothing…”

“Bane, as lovely as that sounds, you know I have responsibilities to my sisters. You know what I do.” Deflated, he pulls away from her. He sat on the edge of the bed, fishing for his pants. Prue stared at his gorgeously toned back and sighed wistfully. If only it were that easy. She would love to just up and move, but the Power of Three always came first. No matter how much she hated it. Bane stood from the bed, stretching the rest of his sleepiness away. He pulled a shirt from the dresser and slowly put it on, still not facing Prue.

They’d been together on and off since Bane had been released on parole six months ago. He’d only been in prison a little over a year, but he’d been released for good behavior. Willing submitting to the police after he escaped helped a lot. 

“I’ve got three more months on my parole and then I’m a free man,” Bane said, turning around to face Prue. He was more or less dressed, even if it was unkempt. “Why don’t we start talking about getting our own place…?” Bane leaned down to her, laying a gentle kiss on her lips. Prue hummed and leaned into him, unable to keep a smile off her face.

“We’ll see.” They both laughed and pulled each other closer. Leaving was always the hard part. Prue forgot how much she truly cared for Bane until he was standing in front of her again. Things were starting to get fun when she heard the sound of her sisters breaking into the apartment. Granted, it was her apartment and they did have a key for emergencies (or privacy since it was unused most days of the year). _Still_.

Phoebe barged in seconds later, her eyes covered as she yelled, “Sorry to interrupt! Can’t see a thing!” Piper ran in after her, scolding Phoebe for barging, before turning to look at Prue and Bane.

“Piper, Phoebe, what the hell is going on?” Prue said through gritted teeth.

“I know this looks bad, but it’s very important.” Bane sighed from behind Prue and moved to stand again, buttoning his shirt as he went. “Hi Bane.”

“Hi Phoebe,” he said with fond exhaustion. “Duty calls?”

“Duty calls,” Piper said. She turned to look at Prue, her eyebrows raised. Prue scowled at her, shaking her head slightly. Piper made a face in return while Prue did that sarcastic, annoyed laugh that she only did when she was pissed off.

“Apparently, duty calls.”

“I have to head back anyway, Prue. I’ll call you when I get back to LA.” He leaned down to kiss her cheek, nodded at the sisters and left the room.

“This better be important.” Prue scowled at them again as she stood up to get dressed. Phoebe flopped onto the bed, but Piper made a face at it and chose to lean against the doorframe.

“I can’t use my blow dryer,” Phoebe said, her eyes wide in only the way little sisters can manage.

“So have you been attacked by the Shocker demon yet?” Piper asked.

“Seriously, you barged in because your _blow dryer_ isn’t working?” Apparently, Prue had the Halliwell hearing and was going to start a fight with Phoebe, completely ignoring Piper’s comment.

“Hello, Shocker demon. We can’t use electricity because he comes out and shocks us,” Piper said, waving her arms to break up the impending fight, moving further into the spacious bedroom. Prue turned to look at her, her mouth open in shock.

“A demon? Why have you not vanquished him already?”

“Well, ya see, it’s because we need the Power of Three but the third has been shacking up across town and hasn’t been home since the Shocker demon came over to play,” Piper said, full sarcasm saturating her words.

“So… can you come home and help us get rid of this demon? Because I need my blow dryer and Piper needs her coffee, because she’s grumpy with out it,” Phoebe stage whispered. Piper smacked her with a pillow she yanked off the bed. “See what I mean!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll shower and head back to the manor. Now, get out,” Prue said, ushering her sisters towards the door. It was not so kindly slammed in their face, causing Phoebe to pout.

“I think that went fairly well,” Piper said, turning and walking towards the main door.

* * *

When Piper returned from the club later in the afternoon, Phoebe was lounging in the living room.

“Is Prue here?” she asked, tossing her jacket and purse on the chest by the door. Phoebe nodded, looking up from her book.

“Yeah, she’s in the attic looking at the book.” Piper pulled a face.

“Did you tell her we already have the vanquishing spell?”

“She said she was looking for something else.” Phoebe shrugged, but marked her page and stood up. She and Piper headed up the stairs, hoping to actually talk to their sister.

“Prue?” Piper said as she walked through the door of the attic. The eldest sister was furiously flipping through the Book, intent on whatever she was searching for.

“Can’t talk, gotta find something…”

“We already have the vanquishing spell,” Piper said, sharing a look with Phoebe across her shoulders.

“No, not that,” she said. “Something I told Bane is bothering me…”

“And the solution is in the Book?” Phoebe asked. Prue sighed and looked up from the Book for the first time since her sisters had come up.

“Okay, do you guys remember when we were little and we used to play that fairytale game?”

“The one where you were the evil witch and Piper and I were your victims? Vaguely, vaguely.” Prue wrinkled her nose at Phoebe and her tone.

“Alright, well, it always seemed more real to me.” She shrugged and turned back to the Book. “I just wondered if there was something about it in the Book.”

“Like the fairies?” Phoebe leaned her chin into Prue’s shoulder, watching her flip through the pages with purpose.

“Exactly.” Prue flipped through a few more pages before she gasped, “Oh my God.” Piper looked up at her sister’s exclamation.

“The Enchantress?”

“That’s it! That’s-- that’s the one I remember! And the spell-- B_ring together my prince and me. Let him fall on bended knee_\--” Piper and Phoebe tried to cut her off, tried shutting the Book, but single-minded Prue kept reading. “_I summon him to my side so that he may take me to be his bride_!” When Prue finished, she finally made eye contact with her very angry sisters.

“Prue… What did you do?” Piper said in a very deliberate tone. She opened her mouth to respond when a gust of wind blew through the attic, interrupting the impending fight.

The three of them stared at the man in armor that had been deposited in front of them. He surveyed them closely, his eyes drifting over the sisters before landing on Prue. Once they locked eyes, he swiftly dropped to one knee.

“My love.”

* * *

Prue jogged down the stairs towards the kitchen and her car keys.

“Why do you run from me?” Chain mail man asked as he clanked down the stairs after her.

“Why are you chasing me?” Prue threw over her shoulder as she passed the threshold into the kitchen. She had a clear escape until, “Because we are meant to be together!”

Prue turned on him, her eyes narrowing in a way that her sisters knew she was _angry_.

“Does this look like King Arthur’s court to you, buddy?” He simply blinked at her in response, looking at Prue with that young and dumb gaze that would’ve made her swoon ten years ago. He shook off the missed reference and stepped closer to her.

“It doesn’t matter. We’re meant to conceive an heir, my love.” Piper gave a short cackle as Prue wrinkled her nose.

“You guys want some privacy?” Phoebe asked, giggling.

“This is not funny, Phoebe.” Prue flicked her hand across the kitchen and whacked the prince with a plate. He groaned on impact and stumbled to the floor. Prue winced as he did, instantly regretting her actions. What if he was an innocent? And she’d just hit him over the head…

“Oh… I”m sorry. Did that hurt?” She stepped forward, sticking out a hand to help him up. He took it, but instead of standing up, he started kissing it.

“You could never hurt me, my love.” Prue tried yanking her hand away, making an _ew_ face the entire time.

“Piper!! Freeze him!” Phoebe choked trying to hide her laughter as Piper unsuccessfully tried to worm her way out of it.

“I-- I don’t want to blow him up!”

“Well, risk it. He’s using his tongue!” Prue whined, trying again in vain to yank her hand away. With a sigh, Piper winced and threw her hands up. With a sigh of relief from everyone in the kitchen, the prince froze. Prue _yehcked_ as she wiped her hand off and moved to stand next to her sisters.

“Thank God chivalry is dead. He is getting on my _last_ nerve.”

“Okay, okay, well he must be under some kind of spell,” Phoebe reasoned with a wave of her hand towards him.

“Gee, ya think?” Piper said sarcastically. Prue cut her a glare as her sister rolled her eyes.

“No, the Enchantress, she cast a love spell on him.” Piper and Phoebe turned to look at her, curious.

“So then why is Sir Lust-a-Lot chasing you around the house?”

“How am I supposed to know?”

“Well, it’s your damn fairytale. Now it’s alive and frozen in our kitchen.” Piper crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow, giving the oldest sister A Look. Prue huffed. She walked across the kitchen to grab her keys off the hook and turned on her heel to walk out of the kitchen. Piper an Phoebe glanced at each other before hurrying after her.

“Uh, Prue? Where are you going?” They tried to match her pace, but she was a woman on a mission.

“I can’t do this,” she said as she shrugged on her coat.

“What about the Shocker Demon?” Phoebe asked. She was still a little upset about the whole blow dryer thing, but she also missed being able to watch TV and listen to the radio and shower with the lights on. Prue was being just a tad bit selfish and it really pissed Phoebe off. How many times did Prue berate Phoebe for being young and selfish and all about herself? And the one time they truly, truly needed Prue and the Power of Three, she brushed it off to play house with Bane.

“We’ll do it when I get back from my shoot. I can’t afford to lose this job, and we can’t afford to lose the income.” She didn't look back at her sisters as she walked out of the house. As she slammed the door, Piper yelled, “Prue, the Charmed Ones come first!”

Phoebe let out a short laugh and smacked Piper’s arm. Piper hung her head and headed into the living room.

“The Charmed Ones come first? Really Piper?”

“It always works when Prue says it,” she said begrudgingly. Phoebe opened her mouth to continue needling her sister when her eyes were drawing to the TV that suddenly clicked on. The lady on the screen began discussing the house being shown. Piper froze next to her, her whole body going on alert.

“Who set the VCR to record?”

The VCR ejected the tape first and then the Shocker Demon. Piper reacted first, throwing a blast at it. It missed and hit the TV instead. The demon came up behind Piper while she was distracted and throw an energy bolt at her. She cried out as she was thrown over the couch. She hit the floor with a thud, the impact knocking the breath out of her lungs.

Phoebe levitated and attempted to kick the demon, but he simply grabbed her foot. Electricity coursed from the demon into Phoebe. Piper fought her way to her feet and grabbed the nearest object, an empty plant stand, and shoved it into the demon’s chest. It released Phoebe, and reared back to attack again when Piper dropped the stand and threw another blast at it, forcing it to retreat to plan its next attack.

“Phoebe?” Piper rushed over to her baby sister and pulled her to her feet.

“I’m okay, I think,” she groused.

“Prue has got to come home, before there’s no one to come home to.” They sighed together and looked around the newly trashed living room. If the demons could have just a little bit of respect for their house and the fact that they are not wealthy…

“Guess we need a new TV…” Phoebe spun in a slow circle, looking at what got trashed. Looks like she’d be doing the repair rounds again. They should just stock up on the things they break often…

“Oh, shit,” Piper said. Phoebe looked at her as she turned around. “The Prince.” Phoebe’s eyes widened in realization as well, and together they ran into the kitchen, only to find it empty. The back door was swinging gently in the breeze.

“So, I’m guessing he didn't just disappear back into fairly land?” Phoebe said in a defeated tone.

“C’mon, when have we ever been that lucky?” Piper said as she shut the back door. No need to invite anymore trouble in. “He’s probably gone to find Prue.”

“So he’s just wandering around in chain mail?” Phoebe was frustrated. It would be nice, if just once, the weird things in their lives stayed put in the house. How hard was it, really? She did it all the time.

“Yeah, but it’s San Francisco. Nobody will notice.” Piper waved her hand dismissively.

“Sooner or later, somebody’s gonna notice, and we don’t want that trail to lead back to us. I hate those phone calls from Darryl,” Phoebe said.

“Alright, you try scrying for him, and if that doesn’t work, I’ll have Leo orb Prue back here and hopefully the prince will follow.” Piper raised her eyebrows, waiting for Phoebe to agree. Her sister nodded grudgingly and they separated ways to fix Prue’s mess. Again.

* * *

Across town, reports of a knight in shining armor holding a garbage man hostage at sword point started flooding Daryl’s desk. He sighed, putting his head in his hands, wishing for the millionth time since Andy had died that he were here to deal with the girls’ bullshit. Because he was already tired. And it was only nine in the morning.

* * *

“Leo, quit telling me what to do,” Prue fussed as she walked across her set.

“Prue, I’m just trying to watch over you. It’s dangerous for you to be alone right now.” His eyes darted around, constantly on edge.

Prue scoffed. “It’s a fairy tale, not a horror movie.”

“Well, I was talking about--” Leo lowered his voice and stepped closer. “About the Shocker demon.”

“He’s not half as scary and Prince Charming coming after me. I’ve been stalked once before, it’s not an experience I would like to repeat.”

“Then you should be at home with your sisters coming up with a solution.” She glared at him as she finished setting her camera up on its tripod.

“I have a job, Leo, and I’m trying to have a life. It would be nice if, just once, the whole good vs evil battle would settle down enough for me to even pretend I’m normal.” Someone waved to Prue from behind Leo, drawing her attention. Prue nodded and then turned back to Leo. “I have to get to work. I’ll call you if I need you.” She patted his shoulder before walking off to discuss the shoot with the production manager.

* * *

Phoebe sat in the living room, half-heartedly scrying. She could hear the phone ring and before she could yell, Piper picked it up. She walked into the room, raising her voice as she went.

“Darryl? Darryl. Darryl! Slow down. Okay, carjackings happen all the time. Why are you calling us?” She sat on the arm next to Phoebe, looking down at her. Phoebe just shrugged and turned back to scrying. Although, she had a feeling she knew why Darryl was calling.

“A garbage truck? At sword point… We’ll get back to ya!” Piper clicked the end button with more enthusiasm than the situation warranted.

“So I’m guessing the police found him.”

“Not yet, just his reign of terror. How about you?”

“Nothin’. I mean, he’s not a witch or a demon, so I don’t know what to focus on.”

“Alright. Le--” As Piper started to yell for her husband, he orbed in in front of her. “O.”

“Hi,” he said with a sheepish green.

“Where’s Prue?” Phoebe turned in the chair, abandoning the scrying for now.

“Prue? ...She didn't want to come.”

“And you took that for an answer? Did you explain the situation to her?” Piper’s voice stayed impressively

“Yes.”

“And she still refused to come? Leo, we are up to our pointy little hats in demonic problems here! We need her.”

“She knows that.” Piper narrowed her eyes at her husband. He was speaking in that way he did when he was keeping something from them that might upset them. Phoebe noticed and interjected, “I don’t understand, we’re her sisters.”

Leo shifted uncomfortably. He shifted his eyes away from his wife and Phoebe; he hated this part of his duties.

“Look, I don’t want to get in the middle of this, this is between you guys. But I will tell you that she wants more than just battling demons, and you guys seem to be trampling over that.” With his wife and sister-in-law gaping at him, Leo barreled on so he could leave sooner. “In the meantime, you need to find the prince before he exposes you. So, I suggest you check with the Book of Shadows and get up to speed on Paige’s fairytale and I will check with the elders and see what they know.” And with that, he orbed out.

There was a beat of silence before Piper turned to Phoebe. “Can you believe this guy?”

“I mean, maybe he’s right… She’s been more distant lately, and she’s always more so after Bane visits.” Phoebe shrugged, as if it were meant to be an offhand comment.

“Okay, we’ll do the witch thing now and the sister thing later, okay?” Piper said. “We’ve got to go find our knight in shining armor.

* * *

Prue was giving instructions to her subject when there was a commotion behind her. She continued to take pictures, ignoring the noise until it became too much.

“What is going on?!” she yelled as she spun around. Immediately she zeroed in on the metal glinting under the stage lights. _Great_. _Just what I need_.

“Taking ten!” she yelled as she jogged over to him. The prince grinned as Prue caught his arm and dragged him into the nearest equipment room.

“At last, I found you,” he said, staring at her with those puppy love eyes.

“Yeah, how did you do that?” she asked.

“I followed your heart, my love.”

Prue gave a sarcastic laugh, crossing her arms. “Listen, you can’t be here. You need to leave before they decide to kick you off set.”

He looked shocked at her words, like this offended him. The prince leaned in closer to her, completely serious. “I will not leave until you are with child.”

“Okay, a) that’s majorly creepy, and b) you’re a fairy tale.” Prue wrinkled her nose and leaned back as the prince ran his hand down her cheek.

“I won’t harm you,” he said. She took a divisive step back, holding a hand between them.

“You just keep that sword of your sheathed, buddy.” As she turned to leave, Prue knocked into an amp. It turned itself on and from the feedback lept the Shocker demon. It reached for Prue, but its arm was sliced by the Prince. If it could have growled it would. It returned into an outlet as the prince turned to Prue.

“Fear not, my love. I’ve slain the beast.”

Prue stared at him, a little bit confused. When faced with a demon, he… fought back. Even if he didn't fully understand it. _Huh_.

“You most certainly have.” Prue’s boss knocked on the door, demanding when she’d return to the shoot. She looked at the prince, finally fully taking him in.

“I will stay forever by your side,” he said in a low voice. “Every moment of every day, you would know you were protected, desired, loved.” She melted a little at that. Those were the very things she wanted from Bane.

“Prue!” her boss yelled as he busted into the equipment room. “What the hell is going on? Who is this guy?” He sized up the prince who bristled under the attention.

“Uh, lining up my next shoot. I’m done for today, I’ve got what I need. See ya!”

Prue grabbed the prince’s hand. Together, they pushed past her boss and headed for the door.

* * *

“I don’t see what the big deal is. Come home long enough for us to fight the demon. You’d think she’d want to help her sisters, considering we’re her only family.” Piper finished lighting the candles on their table. She liked the set up for rituals. It was much more satisfying than the clean up.

“Piper,” Phoebe chastised. She smoothed her hands down the crinkly pages of the book and read outloud, “_Defiant, clever, and independent_. Kinda describes Prue, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, along with stubborn, stubborn, and more stubborn.” Piper walked over to Phoebe to read over her shoulder.

“Alright, well, listen to this. _A powerful witch born into her craft whose power grew as swiftly as her ambitions_. I’m telling you, this is Prue.” Piper squinted at Phoebe, trying to parse the few clues to figure out what her sister was saying.

“What are you getting at?”

“I just think it’s a huge coincidence that Prue’s fairy tale just _happens_ to be in the Book of Shadows, and that this prince just _happens_ to show up in the 21st century head over heels in love with her after she reads a spell?”

“Connect the dots, will ya?” Piper insisted. She was not in the mood for large logical leaps.

“Okay, what if it’s not a fairy tale? What if it’s a memory? Like from a past lift.” Piper shook her head in disbelief.

“Now you’re reaching.”

“I don’t think so,” Phoebe insisted. “I mean, my past life came back to bite me in the ass. Why can’t Prue’s? Think about it. What if Prue was the Enchantress, once upon a time?”

Piper looked at the page in front of her, confused how this enchantress could be her big sister, even if it was once upon a time.

“But… The Enchantress’ power was to conjure the elements. Prue can’t do that. Wicked powers, though.”

Before Phoebe had a chance to respond, wind gusted through the attic. Never a good sign. They watched as a portal opened up in the middle of the room.

“This doesn’t look good,” Piper said as she stepped in front of Phoebe. A woman in a dark blue robe stepped out of the portal and threw Piper and Phoebe off their feet with a blast of air.

“Prue?!” Piper yelled.

“Where is the prince?” the woman who shared Prue’s face asked.

“Still think I’m reaching?” Phoebe said in that ‘_I told you so_’ tone. The Enchantress threw a ball of lightning at them, forcing them to retreat.

“I don’t believe this!” Piper yelled as they raced from the attic.

* * *

Piper and Phoebe collapsed in the conservatory after having put out many, many fires across the house. The Enchantress had followed them downstairs, throwing balls of fire at them, before getting bored and leaving.

“Why do you think she left so suddenly? Did trashing our house become too boring for her?”

“She probably realized we don’t have the prince with us.” There was a moment of pause while they thought about their options and what this day had brought.

“Y’know, this is just great. It’s not like we don’t have enough problems with Prue right now. Now we have to deal with her past life, too?” Piper’s rant was interrupted by Leo orbing in.

“Okay, I found out about the prince.” He surveyed the room around them and the scorch marks covering various pieces of furniture. “What the hell happened here?”

“Oh, Prue’s past life almost killed us,” Phoebe said, voice full of sarcasm.

“What?”

“Yeah,” Piper said as she raised her eyebrows. “Prue, the Enchantress, same soul, different lifetime. She came through some magical portal looking for Prince Carjack.”

“Okay, well, you have to stop her. You can’t let her find him. According to the Elders, if she conceives his heir, dark magic will rule his kingdom forever. History will be rewritten. Your future--”

“Will be screwed. The world will plunge into darkness. Yadda, yadda, yadda.”

“Okay, that’s not helping,” Phoebe said with a look at Piper. “So, if we vanquish Past Prue, don’t we risk vanquishing our Prue too?”

“Possibly,” Leo said. Piper sighed, like this was a very difficult task to do. Phoebe chastised, “Piper…”

“Well then fine. We won’t vanquish her. We’ll bind her powers and send her back in time, hopefully a virgin. Let’s go,” she said as she clapped her hands twice. “We have a potion to concoct.”

* * *

In the apartment that Prue shared with Bane, the prince sat next to Prue on the couch.  
“I-- I still can’t believe you exist, that you’re actually real. I always wanted to save you from the Enchantress so you could live happily ever after…”

“Be with me and I shall.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her closer to him. “Come with me. Live in my castle as my princess.” Prue winced at his words. Words similar to Bane’s. “I can give you all the riches you desire. I can take you away from all of this.” 

“As tempting as that,” she said with an awkward laugh. “I know it’s just the spell talking.”

“But isn’t that what true love is? Falling under someone’s spell?” He brushed her hair from her face, looking soulfully into her eyes. “Just tell me what you want and I’ll give it to you. I swear.”

“Can you give me a normal life?” she said bitterly.

“Uhh…”

“Nevermind. You wouldn’t understand.” She gave him a sad smile and pulled herself away from him.

“Try me,” he said as he leaned in to try and kiss her. As Prue processed what was happening in slow motion, Leo orbed in with her sisters.

“Hey!” Piper yelled and quickly froze the prince mid-kiss. Prue gasped and jerked back from him. She spun on her sisters, scowling.

“What is going on with this barging in thing?!”

“Sorry,” Piper said, completely unrepentant. “Thought he was attacking you.”

“He was kissing me. And what are you doing here anyway? I told you I’d call if I needed to.”

“Well…” Leo started. “Something’s come up. Something you’re not gonna like.” Prue raised an eyebrow in doubt, crossing her arms.

“The Enchantress is here, in our world. She nearly killed us trying to get to him.” Phoebe leaned around Prue to point at the still-frozen mid-kiss prince.

“Actually, that’s not the worst part. Remember how we were wondering how she cast a spell on him, but he fell for you?” Piper said. Prue nodded, still not following along. “Well… that’s because she’s one of your past lives. So when you read the spell in the Book of Shadows, he came through to our world.”

“That’s also why you remember the fairy tale so well,” Leo said. “Because you’ve actually lived it once before.”

“So, what’s the plan?” Prue asked, taking all of this in stride.

“Binding potion.” Phoebe, Piper, and Leo held up bottles full of bright magenta potion.

“I’ll do it,” Prue said, snatching the bottle out of Piper’s hand. Shocked, Piper tries to come up with another plan on the spot. “No, I mean by myself. I put you guys in danger, I’ll get you out of it.” Phoebe tried to speak up, but Prue cut her off too.

“It’s my story. I have to end it once and for all.”

“How are you going to find the Enchantress?” Leo asked. He eyed the sisters warily. The tension in there was unbearable.

“Well, she’s after the prince, right? I’ll just backtrack and surprise her.” Phoebe and Piper just stared at their sister, a little frustrated that Prue won’t let them work together as a team.

“There’s no reason for you to do this alone,” Phoebe insisted. Prue shook her head and Piper rolled her eyes.

“If you wanna do it by yourself, then go for it,” Piper said, crossing her arms. They knew that they can’t make Prue do something she didn't want to do, so they just watched as she strode from the apartment with purpose.

* * *

On the street, Prue climbed into her car. When she looked up to take off, she saw a lady stalking down the street in a long blue dress. Pressing her mouth into a determined line, Prue slammed on the gas and sped towards the Enchantress. She shoved her hand out with a gust of wind, forcing Prue’s car to spin its tires as she tried to speed forward against the unmovable force.

The power of Prue trying to move against the Enchantress’ gust popped her tires. Scowling, Prue climbed from her car and stalked towards the Enchantress.

“Don’t tell me I’ve become good in the future,” she sneered.

“Damn good,” Prue assured her. With a well-practiced motion, she threw the binding potion in the Enchantress’ direction. A tiny bit of lightning met the the potion half-way, disintegrating in the air.

“And here I was looking so forward to meeting myself.” She threw a harsh gust of wind at her future-self, knocking Prue back onto her her windshield, shattering it beneath her wait. The Enchantress’ smirk was the last thing she saw before she blacked out.

* * *

“What was that?” Piper said, her head snapping up at the shattering sound.

“Prue,” Phoebe said. Worry creased her brow and with out hesitation, Leo orbed to Prue’s side. The moment he was gone, the Enchantress burst in through the apartment door.

“Remember me?” she said. Gasping, Piper and Phoebe dove behind the couch to escape a lightning bolt. Once they were out of the way, she beckoned to the prince who’s now unfroze. “Come to me, my prince.” She flicked her hand at the wall and simply opened a portal. The prince walked through first, still under her spell. With a gust of wind, Piper and Phoebe were thrown back, tipping over the couch, before she walked through the portal.

Down at her car, Leo quickly healed Prue. The portal flashed in the apartment and Prue whispered, “Oh no…”

“We can’t just let them get away!” Phoebe groaned, turning to look at Piper. Her face was lit by a weird glow from the portal.

“What are we supposed to do, go back to the Middle Ages? The Dark Ages? Oh, whatever the hell ages those are?!”

“If we don’t, good magic will be gone forever.” Sighing, Piper turned and jumped through the portal, Phoebe following close on her heels. Prue and Leo orbed in just as the portal closed.

“No!” she yelled. “This is all my fault.” Prue started pacing back and forth as Leo examined the wall. What he was looking for, she had no idea, but she couldn’t focus on him. She had to find a way to get them back.

“How are we going to get back to them? Just hop on a bus?” she muttered to herself. Leo stepped away from the wall at moved towards her.

“How did she open the portal?” he wondered out loud.

“Normally it takes a spell. But what would she have used…”

“Maybe we don’t need what she used. Maybe you need to create your own.”

“Create my own portal. Like it’s that easy.” Even as she made the sarcastic remark, the gears were turning in her head. “A portal opened when I called the prince to me… So maybe if I move the spell around a little, I can make the portal work in my favor.

What if I bring myself to the Prince…?” Prue took a deep breath before turning to face the wall the portal popped up on. “B_ring together my prince and me. His kingdom I now wish to see. Crossing history to his side, from myself I will not hide._”

Prue and Leo turned their faces away as the portal opened itself, swirling purple and blue against the beige wall.

“Well, come on. I’m not doing this by myself!” She grabbed Leo’s arm and together they leapt through the portal.

* * *

Prue and Leo peeked around a corner in the Enchantress’ bedroom as she approached the Prince lying in the bed. Prue wrinkled her nose. So cliche…

“Alright, here’s the plan: you go find Piper and Phoebe. I’ll try to hold her off until they get here.”

“Your powers don’t work in the past,” Leo chided gently. She rolled her eyes to look at him.

“Yes, Leo, I am aware. I’ve been to the past a time or two. But, if we really are the same, I should be able to tap into hers. Go get my sisters!” She waved him off, turning her gaze to the Enchantress. As soon as she was sure Leo was on his way, she stepped out into the candlelight.

“Hi,” Prue said with a sarcastic grin. “I hate to interrupt myself at a time like this…” The Enchantress stode, glaring at Prue with a mix of anger and astonished bemusement.

“How did you get here?” she hissed. She stepped forward, pulling her hand back to gather energy in it.

“I’m charmed,” Prue smirked. The Enchantress threw up her hand, lightning racing towards Prue. Instinctively, Prue threw her hand up to deflect. She prepared herself for the shock, but never felt it. The electricity crackled between their hands, caught in an endless loop. She drew her eyebrows together as she concentrated on not letting the electricity zap her. In the distance, she heard the vague clashing of swords and some voices, but she couldn’t be sure whether they were her sisters or not.

Her control finally slipped and she dove behind a heavy wooden chair to avoid being electrocuted. In the midst of the commotion, the prince stepped forward to beg for her to spare Prue, but the Enchantress simply blew him to the side. As the Enchantress turned her head, Piper and Phoebe walked in.

“Throw the potion!” Prue said as she stood up. Before her evil half could raise her hands, Piper and Phoebe had thrown the potion. The puff of smoke envelopes her briefly before dissipating. She tries to use her powers, but nothing happens.

“What have you done to me?” she whined.

“We’ve bound your powers,” Phoebe said in her “duh” voice.

“No more kingdom come for you.” Piper grinned, sneaking a side glance at her sisters, who rolled their eyes at the horrible joke. The Enchantress continued to pout as the prince reunited with his one true love, all sappy and happily ever after. Content with their work, Piper turned to Prue and said, “Take us home, super witch.”

* * *

The three of them sat on the couch together, staring into the fireplace. Phoebe’s legs draped over Prue’s lap, while Piper leaned into her shoulder.

“I missed you,” Phoebe said, rolling her head forward to look at Prue.

“I wasn’t gone that long, you guys.” She gave an awkward laugh. This was a level of affection she wasn’t used to, especially from Phoebe.

“Yeah, but it felt like forever. It’s been us three for so long…” Piper trailed off.

“I’m not moving out, guys.” She paused. “At least, not yet.” Her sisters shared a look over her shoulder.

“So are things with Bane pretty serious?” Prue grinned to herself a little. Piper laughed and nudged her shoulder.

“Of course, Perfect Prue _would_ fall in love with a felon!”

“We can’t all marry literal angels, _Piper_!” Prue shot back, wrinkling her nose at her sister.

“Hey, I thought _Phoebe_ would be the one to fall in love with the felon, not you!” Piper defended.

“Uh!!” Phoebe cried, laughing as she did. “No, I just so happened to have fallen in love with a demon, thank you very much!”

“As long as he’s not the Source of All Evil, I think we’re good,” Prue said with a laugh.

“So, what I’m hearing is, I’m the good sister?” Piper asked sarcastically. Her sisters jumped on her, listing all of the times that she was, in fact, _not_ the good sister.

The night passed quickly as they swapped unarmed accusations and stories of when one sister ratted out the other for such and such act and the revenge that was later had.

After her sisters had fallen asleep, Prue kissed both of their foreheads, thankful that she had them in her life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tell me what you think! this is something i'm enjoying (and writing by hand because apparently my writer's block only translates to a computer)
> 
> i also tweaked the spells bc they were weird and the cadence didn't work right?? whoever wrote it was not on their best shit that day. like, say them outloud do, they're awkward. "his kingdom now i wish to see" bitch, no.


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